A Summary of The Scarlet Letter

In his book, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne tells of a story where a young woman has had an adulterous relationship with a respected priest in a Puritan community. Typical of Hawthorne's writings is the use of imagery and symbolism. In Chapter 12, The Minister's Vigil, there are several uses of imagery when Dimmesdale, the priest, is battling with confessing his sin, which has plagued him for seven years. Three evident techniques used to personify symbolism in this chapter are the use of darkness versus light, the use of inner guilt versus confession, and lastly the use of colors (black versus white).

This ridicule has a trickle down effect on Hester as she too is banished from her own community for committing adultery. The comparison between Hester and Hawthorne defines the external struggle for the reader to fully understand the effect of opinions from society on them Although reluctant to allow Hester to leave prison, the members of the town suggest that her punishment be to wear a scarlet red letter A on her bosom, thereby allowing all to know of her crime. The scarlet letter “ was red-hot with infernal fire, ” (Hawthorne 81) and defined the state she was currently in, that being eternal hell. Though she was forced to marry an older man at a young age, her rebellion to have an affair is not seen as an internal struggle that she overcame; rather, it is merely seen as a woman who sinned, a woman who shall therefore endure the punishment for the sin, rather than a woman who was never given a say in what she wanted with her life. Time and again, Hester Prynne is seen defying society by allowing herself to stand out from societal norm just as the roses “with its delicate gems, which might be imagined to offer their fragrance and fragile beauty to the prisoner“ (Hawthorne) did. Instead, she returns to the community and is observed aiding those in need, all with seven year old Pearl by her side.

When Chillingworth asks Hester the identity of her lover, she refuses to answer. Because of this, Chillingworth makes her promise never to reveal that he is her husband. After Hester is released from prison, she goes to live in a small cottage at the edge of town. After a few years, people begin to notice that her daughter, Pearl, behaves very strangely, and they threaten to take her away from Hester. Hester takes Pearl to Governor Bellingham's mansion planning to plead for the right to keep her daughter. At the mansion she is met by the governor and his three guests, Reverend Wilson, Reverend Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth. Reverend Dimmesdale convinces the governor to allow Hester to keep Pearl. Chillingworth, who has been living with Reverend Dimmesdale since his arrival in town, begins to suspect that Reverend Dimmesdale is the father of Pearl. One evening while Dimmesdale is sleeping, Chillingworth examines Dimmesdale's chest and finds something which confirms his suspicion. From this moment on, Chillingworth devotes himself to seeking revenge. One night, Dimmesdale is so tormented by his conscience that he goes and stands on the scaffold that Hester had stood on seven years earlier. As he is standing there, he sees Hester and Pearl walk by and he calls them onto the scaffold with him. After he acknowledges his guilt to them, a giant red A

In the novel The Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, all of the characters possess specific traits of the seven deadly sins which are lust, gluttony, greed, pride, wrath, envy and sloth. My character Roger Chillingworth possesses the sins, greed, wrath and pride. I will attempt to make a connection between the sins committed by Chillingworth and his motivation behind those sins and sins committed by people in our world today. For example, one could compare wrath to the destructive and horrible feats of today’s murders that feel they have been treated unjustly, therefore, take the lives of those they feel have wronged them. Another comparison is the effects that pride can have on today’s role models such as professional athletes and the result of greed on some of today’s entertainers who need more and more stuff, such as cars, homes, jewels and the list goes on and on.

The story takes place in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Hester Prynne, a married woman, fell in love with the young clergyman, Dimmesdale. She was found guilty of adultery when she gave birth to a little girl, Pearl. As a punishment, Hester needed to wear a scarlet letter “A” for the rest of her life. This story is about how she created a new life with her little daughter through struggle after the affair.

The main character, Hester Prynne, had sex with the minister Dimmesdale, when she was already married. Hester has a baby from this sin of adultery, and names her Pearl. The town officials find out, and put her in prison. When she comes out, her punishment is to wear this scarlet letter A on her chest for the rest of her life. Hawthorne explains, “It had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself” (Hawthorne 51).

Hester commits the sin of adultery with Dimmesdale, and their daughter Pearl is the result. Her sin, disclosed to the town by a letter “A,” is displayed on her chest for people to see. Eventually, Hester’s scarlet letter turns into a token of her good deeds. People refer to her as “our Hester―the town’s own Hester―who is so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comforting to the afflicted” (Hawthorne 159). Because she displays a new side of herself, one that bears the pain of people’s harsh judgement, the townspeople find that her letter is not only there to punish her, but it is also used to resemble her resilience, her power to embrace her sin, and her will to help others.

Despite the brutal treatment toward Hester throughout the novel, such as comments like, “surely you have heard of Mistress Hester Prynne and her evil doings. She hath raised a great scandal, I promise you, in Godly Master Dimmesdale’s church,” (Hawthorne 58) she stays a solid, and strong figure, and mother for Pearl. She is under constant scrutiny, but is able to keep a level head, and a loving and nurturing outlook. In the words of Andrea Seabrook in her article titled “Hester Prynne: Sinner, Victim, Object, Winner,” Hester, “raises...Pearl, by herself, fighting to keep her when the authorities try to take the child away. Over the years, Hester gains the respect of other women in Boston, becoming something of a quiet confidant for them.”

Next, the interaction between Chillingworth and Hester further proves Hester’s strength. Chillingworth orders Hester to tell him the name of Pearl’s father. Hester refuses, “Ask me not! That thou shalt never know!” (Chapter 4). This is surprising now because during the puritan times, husbands had control over their spouses. Women were seen as disobedient if they didn’t follow their husband’s orders. The setting and Hester’s replies to Chilling worth shows Hester’s obvious strength and her

Hester then returned to her cell and Roger Chillingworth was brought into the cell to attempt to calm her and Pearl down. Chillingworth then proceeded to send the jailer on his way, and demanded that Hester tell him who the father was. She refused. Since Hester knew that Chillingworth was her long lost husband, Chillingworth insisted that Hester never reveal that they were married. Chillingworth said that if Hester does, he would ruin the real fathers life. Hester agreed reluctantly fearing that she may come to regret her decision.

In the stories of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the antagonist characters display parallel story lines through their searches for the enemy. Roger Chillingworth, the former husband of Hester Prynne and the antagonist of The Scarlet Letter, works against his wife in order to find her untold second lover. Frankenstein is a contrasting story in which an unnamed monster is the antagonist towards his human creator, Dr. Frankenstein. Yet despite quite different story lines, the two characters possess traits that exibit parallels between them. In the novel The Scarlet Letter, Roger Chillingworth displays the startling passionate characteristics of an unwavering drive to seek out his foe, madness as his focus on his search takes over his entire being, and terrible anguish when his task is unexpectedly over, all of which are reflected in the daemon created at the hand of Dr. Victor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley 's novel Frankenstein.

Hester Prynne is the main lady in this novel, she is the mother of Pearl, a seamstress, and a shunned woman who committed adultery with a priest. Hester is also the wife to roger Chillingworth, who keeps his identity a secret to everyone but her. Hester starts out our tale in the prison, where a rose bush is visible outside the

After being found guilty of adultery, Hester is forced to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her clothing as a public sign of shame. Her long lost husband, now under a new name to remain unknown, reappears after being presumed lost at sea. With revenge on his mind, a drama explodes around Hester. Over many years, her lover Dimmesdale falls ill and the new town physician Chillingsworth spends many hours by his bedside, only to start believing that Arthur is the father of Pearl, Hester’s out-of-wedlock child. When pleading with Dimmesdale, Hester begs him to leave for Europe so that they can start a new life together. This plan fails when Hester discovers that Chillingsworth is also to be a passenger. Eventually, Dimmesdale dies in Hester’s arms, and losing an opportunity at revenge, Chillingsworth dies shortly after. With a large amount of money left to her, Pearl and her mother relocate to Europe to start a new life (Hawthorne).

“Human nature will not flourish, any more than a potato, if it be planted and replanted for too long a series of generations in the same worn-out soil. My children have had other birthplaces, and, so far as their fortunes may be within my control, shall strike their roots into unaccustomed earth.” (23)-Nameless narrator’s narration

Hawthorne had introduced Chillingworth as the victim, not the villain. After all, Hester and Dimmesdale both violated him by engaging in the act of adultery. This causes many readers to sympathize for Chillingworth until he plainly confesses that it was originally himself that sinned: "Mine was the first wrong, when I betrayed thy budding youth into a false and unnatural relation with my decay."(66) Chillingworth knew that Hester didn't love him before they were married, but he was looking for what he